But representatives of the Michigan War Dog Memorial hope he will serve as an inspiration for others.

A spokesman for the Oakland County-based military pet cemetery said this week that more than $600 had been raised for the purchase of a headstone for Shaman, a military work dog who had served in Iraq.

“Whatever we end up raising above that will be put into a fund to help out others,” said Phil Weitlauf, memorial director.

He and his fellow board members hope to augment that fund with donations from area businesses.

The cemetery assists with burials for military dogs, but their handlers must pay for headstones.

“A lot of them have trouble with that because they’re just getting back to civilian life,” Weitlauf said.

That was the case for Shaman’s longtime handler, Army Staff Sgt. Dennis Asher of Howell. Asher sent Shaman to his family in Howell four years ago after medical issues forced the German shepherd’s retirement from active duty.

Together, the pair had trained in tracking, obedience and aggression-control techniques stateside before being transferred to the same high-security Iraqi prison where former dictator Saddam Hussein had been held.

Shaman died July 21 after a long battle with spinal cord disease and will now be buried with full military honors in September.

“He will receive an honor guard. We’ll present Sgt. Asher with a flag that had been flown over the Capitol, and we’ll even have a K-9 tribute,” Weitlauf said.

March and tribute

That tribute features a team of eight military dogs that will march around the burial site before howling a final farewell to their comrade.

“I’m sure there won’t be many dry eyes,” Weitlauf said.

The memorial is at the site of a restored pet cemetery in the area of 11 Mile and Milford roads in Lyon Township.

“It was founded in 1936 but had largely been abandoned by the 1980s,” Weitlauf said.

He and others began clearing heavy brush from the site four years ago.

With K-9 Corps members restricted from burial in military cemeteries, Weitlauf and his fellow board members decided to convert the site into a burial ground for military dogs.

They expanded it this year to include police dog burials as well.

Dogs from police units in Novi and Livingston County were recently interred at the site.

For more on the Michigan War Dog Memorial, including information on how to make a donation, visit http://www.mwdm.org.